Reasons Why I Haven't Posted Lately

Hello to you! ;) It has been brought to my attention that I've missed blogging for several days in a row. Actually, I was aware of that fact . . . it has just been a really crazy couple of weeks. To atone, I will share a few pictures that will help illustrate why I've been away from my computer.


First, my husband took me on a surprise trip to Shoshone Falls near Twin Falls, Idaho. The Snake River is about as full as we've ever seen it this year, so the falls are spectacular, as you can see above. It was my birthday that week, and this was a fun way to celebrate.

After enjoying the beautiful Shoshone Falls, we drove into Twin Falls, crossing Snake River Canyon over the the famed Perrine Bridge.

We stayed in Twin Falls that night, and wanted to hit a session at the fairly new Twin Falls Temple. But when we arrived, we learned that the sessions only run every 2 hours. So we settled for doing sealings instead. It was a wonderful way to start out my birthday.



After spending time in this beautiful temple, we changed, ate a bite of lunch at an impressive Chinese buffet, then we went exploring. We found the Perrine Falls. This waterfall is one of the longest I've ever seen. It starts at the top of Snake River Canyon and plummets to the ground below. This is what it looks like up close at the bottom:

We headed next to explore the Shoshone Indian Ice Caves, located north of Twin Falls. This was a fun adventure. It was so hot that day, the ice cave felt wonderful. It is about 40 degrees inside this cave. For a while, I felt like I could live there. ;)




We eventually headed home, after meeting up with Kennon's siblings and spouses at a favorite Greek Restaurant for dinner that night in Pocatello. Then we geared up for the weekend.



That weekend (July 10-12) a huge reunion on my mother's side of the family tree took place. My son, Derek, his wife, Kristen, and their cute little girl, Aari, came down on Friday. Saturday morning, we headed to nearby Bear Lake to enjoy a picnic, and to play in the sand and water. As you can see, Aari had a blast. So did her grandmother. =D



My mother then arrived at our abode that afternoon with her brother, his wife, and his m-i-l. We enjoyed a good visit, fun food, and prepared to head up to Star Valley for the annual James Lowery & Genevieve Sibbett reunion. A good time was had by all.



Above you can see some of my cousins, and their mother, one of my favorite aunts, singing a touching number. (Music is huge on this side of our family tree.)



After the reunion, we prepared for the annual girls' camp adventure that took place this past week in our stake. (July 14-17)This year we journeyed once again to Camp Honock, located near Soda Springs. Once again a good time was had by all.



And you'll be happy to know that there weren't any serious injuries this year. (Yep, we put up our huge cabin tent without it caving in on my head.) My oldest son, Kris, pictured above with his cute mommy, helped us out a ton as we put our campsite together.

All in all, it has been a crazy couple of weeks---and the craziness continues. In a few minutes, I'm leaving for Ashton, Idaho for my 30 year class reunion. Wow, how the time flies by.

I wish you all a safe, fun weekend, and I'll be back sometime next week.

Favorite Shots of Summer 2008

Summer is winding down. We've endured two frosts this past week that finished off
my zucchini plants, tomatoes, etc. I suspect this is a hint that fall lies just around the corner. As such, I thought I would celebrate the final week of summer by sharing some of my favorites pictures---shots I took at varying times and places during the past few months. We'll call this one of my traditions---savoring fun memories that were a big part of summer 2008. (The sunset shot above was taken from the east shore of Bear Lake . . . in case any one was wondering.)


Take a wild guess about what we found in a wildlife preserve located just outside of Zion's National Park---something I'd never seen before. I'll give you a hint---here are the proud parents:


Yep, ostrich eggs. Way cool, and again, something I'd never seen before. How about you?


And since I mentioned our trip to St. George, I'd best show off a picture from the famed Zion's National Park. I was excited to see that the road matched the color of the gorgeous red mountains. Wouldn't it be neat if this type of thing was evident all over the world?! Highways colored to match the local scenic beauty. That means in Bear Lake County, our streets would be an aquamarine color to match our claim to fame, Bear Lake. ;) We spent quite a bit of time in this location this past summer. Can you blame us?!


Summer wouldn't be complete without mentioning family reunions. We attended our share of those this past summer. A highlight: floating down Portneuf River in Lava Hot Springs at the Crane Reunion. Aside from a few bumps and scrapes, everyone survived that adventure.


Here's a shot of my husband and I at yet another reunion, after enjoying delicious smoked pork and a plethora of salads, desserts, etc. (Note: that's a bottle of water in my husband's hand, just in case you were wondering.)


We also spent quite a bit of time camping this summer. Our small camper is fairly easy to drive around and we enjoy spending time in the forest. True, I pretty well out-fished my husband this summer, but in way of good news, he didn't make me walk home. ;)


Girls' Camp was another whole adventure in and of itself, something I'm still recovering from. (See the blog post entitled "Climb Every Mountain . . . or not" posted on Aug. 6, 2008 ) Pictured below are the girls from our ward shortly after a performance of the traditional camp skit. They did a great job of hamming things up.

And one of the final adventures of the summer, the traditional huckleberry gathering. We've been out about 4 times now and I can safely state that we will have plenty of huckleberries for the holiday season. I may even be able to stash a couple of pints for our youngest son's missionary homecoming next spring. ;)

All in all, I would have to say that we thoroughly enjoyed this past summer. I don't recall sitting in a corner being bored. ;) And I took enough pictures to document everything. They don't call me the family photo-bug for nothing. ;) Now I'll have to shift gears and prepare for the fall foliage shots. I can hardly wait. =)

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In the Good Ol' Summertime

I think summer has finally arrived. Here in Bear Lake Valley, we feel like we've jumped straight from winter to summer. There was no spring to speak of. =) We endured a series of wintry storms during what should have been spring. But summer has arrived, and it is gorgeous. All of the moisture we received has contributed to the brilliant green color of the hills and surrounding farms. Flowers are blooming all over the place, wild and otherwise. And the flowering trees are beautiful. This is the first year that my row of lilacs has actually bloomed. I've been nursing them along for years---last year I had high hopes for them, but the blossoms froze. This year, not only did my lilacs bloom, but so did my flowering crab tree. This is a huge event in my life.

For years, I've tried to grow a flowering crab tree. My first attempt was planted several years ago. Then one winter, my boys flattened the tree, breaking it off at the base when they hit it during a snow machine adventure. They had attached an inner tube to the back of the snow machine, and as they took turns giving each other wild rides, they managed to hit my poor tree. Sigh . . .

So, they gave me a new one for Mother's Day the following spring. It flourished for a short time. Then, while we were gone on a family trip, our beloved dog, Brandy the wonder mutt, ate it. I kid you not. This is one strange dog. She loves the taste of tree sap. She has chewed off more branches than I care to remember through the years. (My family comforts me by stressing that Brandy always takes care of my spring-time pruning.) But when we returned home to a chewed up flowering crab tree, I was stunned. She had chomped right through the small trunk. It lay to the side of where it had been planted---Brandy's way of punishing me for leaving her home. (We had arranged for her to be fed and watered while we were gone. It wasn't like she was starving and had to make do with what she could find. And I'm not sure why it's always my fault when our family does something that displeases her. I'm the only one who ever suffers her wrath---chewed up trees, flowerbeds that are ruined, etc. but I digress).

The next spring, my family once again gave me a flowering crab tree for Mother's Day. This time we used a strategy. We put an ugly, high fence around it for protection. So far, this plan has worked, possibly because Brandy can't chew through metal. ;)

So, yes, seeing this crab tree flower this year brought tears to my eyes. It's beautiful. Everything I've hoped for through the years. I even received a compliment on this tree yesterday from a neighbor. I basked in the glow of what she said for hours. =)

This summer, we also planted a garden, something we haven't done for a few years. Weddings, missionary adventures, family trips, and life in general, put a temporary halt to this yearly tradition. Can I just say that I love playing in the dirt? =) Too bad my silly body doesn't agree with this practice. I have a form of rheumatoid arthritis and sometimes bending to pick weeds is not my friend. But we persevered this year. My husband and oldest son helped me plant our garden. And tiny plants are already starting to come up. (Don't make fun---it takes us longer in Bear Lake to get things to grow).

I love summer!!! I love seeing things grow, spending time outside, and as already mentioned, playing in the dirt. I enjoy picnics, fishing, and reunions. (Especially when I'm not in charge of them.) I also enjoy camping adventures, and watching my nephews play baseball. These are the fine things that make summer a wonderful time of year. I'm sure we all have lists of traditional activities that we enjoy during the summer months. And as the official day of summer speeds on by, I challenge you to do your best to savor this marvelous season.

What are some of your favorite things to do in the summer? Any fun traditions? Don't be shy now, feel free to share.

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